Defence minister thanks NATO allies for support in Russia spat

The Czech minister of defence, Lubomír Metnar, has expressed gratitude to the leaders of other NATO states which backed the Prague government over its recent dispute with Russia. Mr. Metnar said he wished to thank the country’s allies for their support after the Czech Republic revealed Russian agents had caused a deadly explosion on Czech territory; it later expelled dozens of Russian diplomats from Prague.

Regarding another issue discussed at a NATO summit in Brussels, the Czech defence chief said he was in favour of meeting the country’s commitment to spending 2 percent of its GDP on defence. However, the economic reality needed to be taken into account, Mr. Metnar said.